Extra special thanks to Holice B. Young for transcribing this series of books!

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CHAPTER XV.
SETTLEMENT AND CAPTURE OF ASTORIA.

"As cunning spiders wisely weave,
The web that nets their prey,
So patiently does commerce plan
For gain of future day;
Yet as the insect's well-wrought snare
By chance of breeze is blown,'
So wisest schemes are fruitless found
By circumstances o'erthrown."

--BREWERTON.

As the reader must already have discovered, the British fur companies
were the bitter enemies of all who attempted to compete with them ina
region which they had already come to regard as exclusively their own,
and where they used every effort to retain their supremacy. Weaker
attempts to oppose them had been rendered abortive by a policy which
systematically discouraged or "froze out" (to sue a most
expressive Westernism) their authors. Matters were in this condition
when Mr. John Jacob Astor, the beginnings of whose them great fortune
(for a few hundred thousand dollars in those days ranked their possessor
with the millionaire of our own time) had risen from his dealings in
furs, determined to forma company and establish the traffic on a large
scale as an American enterprise on the Northwest coast. Now this Mr.
Astor, so widely known now as the founder of a family of enormous
wealth, was not an American by birth, but a native of Heidelberg, who
came here poor, amassed a fortune, and was a citizen by adoption of the
United States. Had he been "to the manor born" we fancy his
enterprise would have been more patriotically American and have ended
more happily than it did. As it was, he regarded his undertaking as a
mere commercial investment, selected its personnel accordingly,
and failed. Otherwise his plans wee farseeing and well laid. He proposed
to prosecute the fur trade

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over all the unsettled regions claimed by the United States, to
furnish the Russian settlements with supplies to be paid for in furs,
and then re-sell at Canton, taking silks and teas in exchange. It was a
colossal scheme, and deserved to succeed; had it done so it would have
built up a trade which would have advanced American settlement and
actual occupancy on the Northwest coast by at least a quarter o a
century, given employment to thousands, and transferred the enormous
profits of the Hudson's Bay and Northwest British fur companies from
English to American coffers.

Looking over the ground, and, being well aware of the jealousy he
would excite, and the difficulties thus engendered, and being,
therefore, like the prudent man of business that he was, anxious to
disarm and soften the enmity sure to grow out of his effort to enter
their field a competition, we find him beginning his enterprise
cautiously. Having this in mind, he writes to the directors of the
Northwest Company, then in the zenith of its power and a serious rival
of its older brother, the Hudson's Bay, though it (the Northwest)
maintained no trading posts west of the Rocky Mountains south of 52°
north latitude, being confined to a region known as New Caledonia. To
these gentlemen, shrewd, unscrupulous, and of great experience, he most
unwisely, as the sequence proves, detailed his plans, and generously
offered them a third interest in his enterprise. He was met with a
duplicity and want of good faith perfectly in accordance with the source
from whence it emanated. To gain time to send a party to occupy the
mouth of the Columbia, to forestall and, if possible, disappoint Mr.
Astor's intentions, they pretended to take his proposition into
consideration, and immediately dispatched David Thompson, their surveyor
and astronomer, with instructions "to occupy the mouth of the
Columbia, to explore the river to its headwaters, and, above all, to
watch the progress of Mr. Astor's enterprise." They then declined
Mr. Astor's proposal; but if they expected to discourage a man of Mr.
Astor's stamp they reckoned without their host, for this ungracious
return for this generosity and good will only stimulated him in his
determination to carryout his plan.

On June 23rd, 1810, the Pacific Fur Company was formed,
Mr. Astor Says:

"I preferred to have it appear as the business of a company

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rather than that of an individual; the several gentlemen were, in
effect, to be interested as partners in the undertaking so far as
respected the profit which might arise, but the means were furnished by
me and the property was solely mine, and I sustained the loss."

We will now revert to Evans's narrative of the sequence of events
which, leading through a chain of misfortunes, culminated in the final
overthrow of Mr. Astor's undertaking, cutting down his elaborate
statement of facts to such limits as our story will permit.

"Mr. Astor associated with himself as partners Alexander Mackay,
Duncan MacDougal, and Donald Mackenzie, all late of the Northwest
Company, men of great experience. Mackay had accompanied Alexander
Mackenzie in his two voyages of discovery." (The reader will
probably remember the strong anti-American sentiments that worthy laid
down.) "The partners subsequently added were David and Robert
Stuart and Ramsey Crooks, all Scotchmen, (as their names indicate.)
"John Clarke, of Canada, Wilson P. Hunt and Robert Maclellan,
citizens of the United States."

And here at the very outset we find Mr. Astor, with all his
shrewdness, making his first and most fatal mistake. In this choice of
partners he was doubtless influenced by a desire to obtain skill and
experience coupled with a thorough knowledge of the country and the
particular trade in which he desired to engage; but he might better have
had less experience and more loyalty. Had he been American by birth, he
would probably have reason with better results. He forgot in his
selection to take into account the strength of an opposing nationality,
to say nothing of previous association with the rival company, with
whose secret enmity he was called to compete. When the Ethiopian changes
his skin and the leopard his spots will the Englishman forget that he is
born a Briton; and we are not sure, if he exhibit his partiality in an
honest way, that is not commendable. But if Mr. Astor had ever heard of
the order and acted upon it said to have been given by Washington,
"Put none but Americans on guard," the Pacific fur company
might have survived, as it did not, the War of 1812. But to return:

"The articles of organization provided that Mr. Astor, as the
head of the company, should remain in New York and man-

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age its affairs, vessels, goods, supplies, arms, and ammunition--in
fact, every necessary was to be furnished by him at prime cost, provided
they did not necessitate at any time an advance to exceed $400,000. The
stock was divided into one hundred shares, of which Mr. Astor retained
fifty. The remainder went to other partners and each persons as might be
added to the company. Mr. Astor reserved the right to introduce other
person as partners, at least two of whom were to be conversant with the
Indian trade; but no individual should be permitted to hold more then
three shares of stock. Twenty years was the duration of the company, but
at the end of five years, if the \business was found to be unprofitable,
it might be dissolved. For the first five years all the loss was to be
borne by Mr. Astor, after which each partner shared the loss in
proportion to his stock."

Could any terms have been fairer or more liberal? His associates
could lose nothing but their time, and might be large gainers. The chief
agent on the Columbia was to hold his position for five years. For this
position Wilson P. Hunt, one of the two Americans, was selected. When he
was absent his place was to be temporarily filled by a meeting of the
partners then present. But the English leaven is already working, and
the time-serving spirit of his British associates begins to display
itself. The partners were to solemnly bind themselves to faithfully
execute the objects of the company; before signing this obligation two
of the British partners communicated to Mr. Jackson, the British
Minister then in New York, the full details of Astor's project, and
desired to know their status as British subjects trading under
the American flag in the event of war between the two countries. Mackay
was assured by the minister "that he saw our object was purely
commercial, but that all he could promise was that in the case of a war they
should be respected as British merchants and subjects." All
scruples of these British partners was dissipated. "Their
patron," says Evans, " did not learn until too late of this
gross disregard of mercantile honor or he might have guarded himself
from the humiliating sacrifice which effectually transferred his
enterprise to unscrupulous enemies."

The main party, consisting of four of the partners, twelve clerks,
five merchants, and thirteen Canadian voyageurs, was to

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go to the mouth of the Columbia via Cape Horn, and await the
arrival of Mr. Hunt, the chief agent, at the mouth of the river. Mr.
MacDougal was to take charge. To convoy the party the ship Tonquin, 290
tons, was fitted for sea, commanded by Captain Jonathan Thorne, a
lieutenant in the United States Navy, on leave. A full assortment of
Indian trading goods, a bountiful supply of provisions, and the frame
timbers of an schooner designed for coasting--in short, everything
necessary to secure comfort was provided for the proposed settlement.

We come now to the first covert attack (unless the dispatch of
Thompson as a spy may so be considered) upon the enterprise.

"Before the Tonquin was ready for sea Astor was apprised that a
British vessel of war was cruising off the Atlantic Coast to intercept
the Tonquin and impress the Canadians as British subjects. This was at
the instance of the Northwest Coast Company, so as to delay the
departure of the ship, and thus give time for their emissary, Thompson,
to arrive first at the mouth of the Columbia. To thwart this, Astor
secured from the United States convoy off the coast till the Tonquin
could proceed without interruption. On the 8th of September
she sailed under convoy of the frigate Constitution, Captain Isaac Hull,
of the United States Navy. Meanwhile, Mr. Hunt, the chief agent, with
whom was associated Donald Mackenzie, who was to lead the overland
party, had gone to Montreal and Fort William to recruit the necessary
voyageurs for the service.

"The Tonquin reached the mouth of the Columbia and anchored in
Baker's Bay on the 22nd of March, 1811. The crossing of the
bar was attended with serious difficulties, and eight of the crew were
lost in their attempt to mark out the channel. On the 12th of
April the launch, with sixteen persons, freighted with supplies, crossed
the river and landed upon Point George. Then and there was established a
settlement to which was given the name of Astoria, in honor of the
projector of the enterprise. By the end of the month the keel of the
schooner of thirty tons had been laid, to be constructed of the frame
timber brought out in the Tonquin. They soon learned that a trading
house had been established, by their rival, the Northwest Company, on
the Spokane River, about twenty miles from its mouth; at the same time
they established forts on Clarke's Fork of the Columbia and on the
Kootenais.

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"On the 1st of June the Tonquin sailed north,
Alexander Mackay, one of the partners, going as supercargo. By the
middle of the month she had reached Cyloquot Sound, on the west side of
Vancouver's Island, and was anchored opposite the Indian two of Newitty.
They were about to commence trade with the Indians of Wickanish's tribe
for sea otter skins. At a preconcerted signal the Indians, who had
unwisely been permitted to crowd the deck of the Tonquin, commenced an
attack. Captain Thorne and Mackay were almost instantly killed; all upon
deck met a like fate. When Captain Thorne dirt observed that the actions
of the natives indicated hostility, he had endeavored to make sail, and
had ordered some of the crew up onto the rigging. Five of the sailors
were still aloft, but one in descending was badly wounded. The remaining
four had continued concealed. After the fight was over the Indians went
on shore. Returning to strip the ship, the live survivors successfully
repelled the savages with fire-arms. In the night, at the earnest
solicitation of Lewis, the wounded sailor, the four left the ship in one
of her boats. Next morning the Indians in great numbers once more
boarded the Tonquin. When they had most numerously collected the gallant
Lewis, the wounded sailor, fire the magazine and blew up the ship,
creating sad havoc among the hordes of savages who were stripping and
robbing the Tonquin. Thus was the murder of Captain Thorne and the crew
of the Tonquin promptly avenged. The four sailors who had endeavored to
escape were overtaken and put to death with terrible tortures. One
Indian interpreter was the sole survivor of this cruel massacre. He was
retained in close captivity for more than two years, when he escaped
through the various coast tribes. The story of the Tonquin's loss was
told by him on his return to Astoria. There had, it seems, been a
misunderstanding between Captain Thorne and the Indian chief on the
preceding day. Captain William Smith, an old and experienced trader on
the Northwest coast, then mate of the Albatross, of Boston, attributed
the real provocation of this tragic affair to the conduct of Captain
Ayres, of Boston. A short time previous the latter had been trading at
Clyoquot Sound, and had induced some ten of the tribe to accompany him
to the islands near the Bay of San Francisco to hunt seals. He had given
a most positive assurance of their safe and early return. He

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sailed southward and violated that promise. In accordance with Indian
customs his inhuman perfidy was avenged by an equivalent sacrifice, of
white men who fell into the hands of the outraged tribe."

And now let us see how it fares with David Thompson, the Northwest
Company's surveyor, astronomer, and spy, who on July 15th,
nearly three months too late to anticipate the American party, arrived
with a crew of eight men ina canoe flying the British flag at Astoria.
He preceded on his mission, reached the Rocky Mountains, but was long
delayed in finding a pass. Deserted by several of his men, he was
obliged to return to the nearest post to winter. In the spring of 1811,
however, he makes an early start, crosses the Rocky Mountains in 52°
north, and striking the extreme northern source of the Columbia, builds
a canoe to descend the river. He builds huts at the forks of the river
as he goes, erects flags upon them, and distributes smaller ones (he
seems to have a cargo of flags) among the natives, which, a la
Indian, were most probably devoted to head decorations by the
squaws. Having gotten rid of his flags, he then proceeds to take formal
possession of the country watered by the Columbia, and its tributaries
(rather a large slice of the Northwest, by the way) in the name of the
King of Great Britain, but always for the Northwest Company. But Astor
was already in possession at its mouth, which, of course, he could not
occupy. It might be a curious geographical problem to decide (had his
"taking possession" been worth anything) where his British
fountain-head mingled with its larger American flood below, and at what
precise point we were to draw the dividing line between Mr. Thompson's
canoeing and the discovery by the New England Gray, backed up by the
settlement of Astor!

And now we come to the very significant statement that though sent as
an avowed emissary of their rival, and while actually engaged in an
expedition hostile to the best interests of his employer, we find
Thompson received and entertained as a welcome guest by MacDougal, the
temporary chief agent, representing Mr. Astor. In spite of the earnest
remonstrance of his fellow-partner Stuart, MacDougal furnished Thompson
with supplies and means to return to his employers.

At the junction of the Columbia and Ocanagon, Mr. Stuart erects Fort
Ocanagon, the first interior post west of the Rocky

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Mountains south of 49° north, and winters there with his company ina
log-house built of the drift-wood collected on the point made by he two
rivers.

On October 2d the Astorians launch the little schooner Dolly, the
first United States vessel built on the Pacific coast. The little band,
reduced in numbers and their supplies beginning to fail, look with
growing anxiety for the arrival of the Tonquin, her reinforcements and
supplies. They have not yet heard of her fate, though Indian rumors came
to them of some ship in the Strait of Fuca being destroyed and her crew
murdered, nor had anything yet been heard of Mr. Hunt and his overland
party. Winter is at hand, and there is little to encourage them. At last
a portion of Mr. Hunt's party arrives on January 8th, 1812;
they reach the settlement in wretched plight. The remainder arrive on
February 15th. They have suffered terribly from hardships and
privation by the way. Even at Montreal, whither Hunt and Mackenzie had
gone in the summer of 181 to procure recruits, did the ill-will of their
rival, the Northwest Company, follow and hinder them. Men who had
engaged to serve were threatened, dissuaded and bought. Unsuccessful at
Montreal, they went to Fort William, where the same tactics produced
similar results. Baffled and disappointed, they returned to St. Louis,
where they arrived September 3d. There the Missouri Fur company
interfered, and did them more harm than their foes at Montreal and Fort
William. To retain the men they had secured, Hunt left St. Louis on
October 21st; his party of three boats ascended the Missouri
four hundred and fifty miles to the mouth of the Nodowa, where he
established his winter quarters. This was in November; in January we
find him again in St. Louis, whither he makes up his number, returns
with his new men to the winter camp, from whence he finally starts for
the Columbia on April 17th. They ascend the river in four
boats, on the largest of which they have mounted a swivel and two
howitzers. The personnel of the party is composed of five
partners, one clerk, forty voyageurs, an interpreter, and several
hunters. The Missouri Fur Company, determined to breakup the expedition,
hand upon their flanks and wage a sort of guerrilla warfare during their
ascent of the river through delays, difficulties, and trouble with the
Indians. They travel fourteen

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hundred miles by water, then abandon their boats and proceed
overland. Following the headwaters of the Yellowstone, they crossed the
Rocky Mountains in September. Reaching the affluent of Lewis's Fork of
the Columbia, they build canoes, intending to descend to the mouth of
the Columbia; but deterred by rapids and other dangers of navigation,
they abandon the project, and finally conclude this chapter of
accidents, delays, dangers, and long preparations, by reaching Astoria
overland.